Traditional Indian Jewelry by Surekha Kulkarni Beaded Treasures Ethnic Gold Silver Necklaces Necklace Bracelet Bracelets Earings Pearls Crystals Crystal

About Surekha
Courier-Journal, The (Louisville, KY) Title: Beaded Treasures Date: October 24, 2005 India native teaches jewelry-making as a link to the human spirit - Missy Baxter Special to The Courier-Journal When Surekha Kulkarni took a trip to her homeland of India a few years ago, she decided to take a class on traditional techniques for making strung beaded jewelry. It was a whim that has resulted in hundreds of intricate, traditional creations. "It just happened by accident," recalls Kulkarni, who grew up near Bombay and moved to Louisville in 1986. "I was on a four-month trip to India and was getting tired of visiting friends, family, and the constant barrage of lunch and dinner invitations. So I decided to attend a jewelry class advertised in the local newspaper." Although she'd "never really been a big jewelry fan before," Kulkarni confesses that "taking that class completely changed my life." "I enjoyed it so much that I couldn't stop. I refused to go out anywhere and kept beading and beading. I fell completely in love with creating jewelry. Once I started, I haven't stopped." Working in gold and silver, along with beads and baubles of glass, stones and semiprecious gems, Kulkarni has crafted hundreds of bangle bracelets, choker necklaces and other accessories that are traditionally worn by women in her native country. She sells them at art and craft shows throughout the Louisville area, including the Prospect Art Show and the World Fest, held annually on the Belvedere. In India, Kulkarni notes, jewelry is much more than merely a fashion statement. "In the ancient cultures of India, the people put in limitless energy and creativity in the invention of ornaments that celebrate the human body," she says. "The human spirit is jewelry's intangible counterpart." During a presentation Thursday at the Crane House, Kulkarni will discuss the relationship between jewelry and the human spirit in Hindu culture. Her talk is called "Women and Jewelry - The Spiritual Dimension of Ornamentation in India." Afterward , Kulkarni's unique wares will be on display and available for purchase. Kulkarni says she'll explain the essential components of Solah Shringar, which translates to "16 adornments." Solah Shringar is the art of adorning a female's body from head to toe and is customarily practiced for special occasions, such as weddings. "The ancients translated adornment of the female form into 16 different ornaments," Kulkarni says. "The choice of the number 16 is significant. It is a significant number among the Hindus, and corresponds to the 16 phases of the life of the moon, which in turn is connected with a woman's menstrual cycle." Shifen Fox, Crane House's program coordinator, says Kulkarni was invited to give Thursday's presentation because "she's a wonderful, interesting speaker who is very fluent in English" and can hold an audience captive. "She did an Indian food cooking class for us early this year and was very good - both hands-on and speaking skills," Fox says. Kulkarni also teaches a class on "Beaded Treasures" for the Jefferson County Public Schools' Adult and Continuing Education. She says she enjoys sharing her passion for traditional jewelry with others. Her life would have been much different if she had remained in India. "I have experienced tremendous personal enrichment since we moved here. Had I been in India, I would have been an executive's wife with all the social obligations that go with the job, and that's it. My husband had a high-profile management job in TISCO , the biggest private steel corporation in India, and I would probably have gotten great at playing mah-jongg…. "Instead we moved to Louisville. And I got to run a grocery store, help my husband with his heavy-equipment export business when help was needed, own and operate a floral-cum-balloon-cum-gift-shop franchise and retire at 45 to travel, conduct cooking classes and make traditional Indian-inspired jewelry." The relationship between body adornment and the human spirit is complex, according to Kulkarni. "Symbols found in Indian jewelry act as a metaphorical language communicated from wearer to viewer. Jewelry is created from an infinite reserve of symbolically significant forms and images, some obvious, some subtle and some whose meaning is forgotten." Quote: "I have no desire to be in great demand and make a lot of money selling my jewelry. I just want to make enough to keep my hobby going, keep enjoying what I am doing and have others share my joy when they wear my creations." To learn more: About her designs or classes, e-mail surekha777@yahoo.com. By Mary Ann Gerth, The Courier-Journal; Surekha Kulkarni, a former businesswoman, learned to make jewelry a few years ago and "couldn't stop." Copyright (c) The Courier-Journal. All rights reserved. Reproduced with the permission of Gannett Co., Inc. by NewsBank, inc. Author: BAXTER MISSY Section: FEATURES Page: 01E Dateline: KENTUCKY, USA=UNITED STATES, INDIA, LOUISVILLE Copyright (c) The Courier-Journal. All rights reserved. Reproduced with the permission of Gannett Co., Inc. by NewsBank, inc